Safari Tops 7% Of Browser Market Share, Mac OS X On The Rise

[knightlie]

Apple needs to do more tricks like the QT upgrade that also included Safari.

Actually a lot of people thought that was pretty underhanded of them. There was a big fuss when they did that, and I tend to agree - disingenuous behaviour doesn't go down well. Let the browser stand on its merits.

By the way, the reason I use Safari is because it is faster than Firefox. Firefox just takes a metric ass load of time to load. Just saying.

While I agree FF is slow to load, I never understand why people use this as an issue to not use it. It's not as if you load it every few minutes, my browser is running all the time. I only have to start it when I reboot or if I need to close FF when I need the RAM, and a few extra seconds while I'm probably doing something else anyway seems neither here nor there. IMO, of course.

 

[Piplodocus]

Since IE is still 70% market share according to this, maybe Apple might like to make MobileMe compliant with IE7? Are they waiting for IE8? Or just purposefully being anti-microsoft?

This is coming from me on IE7 at work, where Me mail is slow as anything, and the calandar is just unuseable. The idea of a web-based mail/calendar is that you can use it anywhere: work, internet cafes, any pc or mac you come across. Currently it doesn't work properly on 70% of machines which you might not have the rights to go installing other browsers on.

P.S. No I don't use IE at home, but that's a choice I'm free to make, unlike millions of PCs where you have to use what's already on them.

 

[n8mac]

Since when is Safari brushed metal anymore either? Apple have phased out brush metal completely.

[snip]

Not true. Safari 3.1.x still uses brushed metal on 10.4.x

I like it. Gives it personality. If I wanted just gray I would go back to OS 9

 

[gjw4u]

Nice to see that IE usage is on the decline and other browsers like Safari & Firefox are increasing their share. Anybody now how many are using Google's Chrome browser these days?

;-> gjw

 

[SimonMW]

The problem isn't so much IE as a whole, but IE6. IE7 is much better, though it still has its quirks in terms of how it inteprets things.

IE6 reduces accessibility. Each and every time I have tried to design a fully fluid website layout with CSS I have always had to revert back to a fixed width design always because of IE6's inability to understand even the most basic CSS functions properly.

The trouble is that there are companies out there still using Windows 98 and many of those companies have to use Microsoft software. They will not install any third party stuff like Firefox.

On the other hand we could ask the question of why such a company needs to view the internet for anything other than the most basic corporate websites. If they were that cutting edge they would have updated their systems in the first place.

 

[batchtaster]

Could someone PLEASE tell me what the advantage of Firefox is over Safari? On both of my macs, FF runs and loads pages incredibly slower than Safari.

Ditto. Although FF3 is better than FF2, Firefox still feels far heavier than Safari. I don't want thousands of extensions either. I just want a streamlined, fast browser (and an adblocker) for the actual Web, rather than a Swiss army knife that handles a bottomless pit of periphery. And I don't get that in Firefox. Safari doesn't crash on me any more than Firefox does.

BTW, this brushed-metal vs not-brushed metal thing is stupid. In that one attribute, Firefox 3 and Safari 3 are the same as each other on 10.4, and they're the same as each other on 10.5.

In any case, it's good to see FF and Safari eating into IE's monopoly, and Mac OS X doing likewise to Windows.

 

[Wkaemena]

Comparison 2007-2008

here some numbers of this Website

June, 1, 2007 - Dec.1, 2007
IE - 72%
FF - 16%
Safari - Mac 5.2%
FF - Mac 2.2%
based on 570000 visits

June, 1, 2008 - Dec.1, 2008
IE - 59%
FF - 22.4%
Safari - Mac 7.7%
FF - Mac 3.8%
based on 243000 visits

 

[vermonter16]

wow do that many people still use IE? even on windows, everyone recommends firefox

My husband still browses with explorer...he says he hates firefox but for the life of me I can't figure out why. That's what I browse with...wonder what he's going to do when the new imac arrives at the end of the week

 

[jellomizer]

As a software developer

I am happy to see IE taking a noes dive. IE is a real pain to develop for even with .NET you try to follow the standards and things just do go as they are documented. Safari is fairly good (but still has some Javascript fixes) And Firefox is very nice to develop for. So nice that I can't use it because I spend so much extra time trying to get the other browsers to work afterwords. So I tend to develop for IE and then the apps normally display similar across other browsers.

 

[chagla]

real men use Opera.
FF copies tons of features from Opera.

if you've never heard of or tried it yet, go here. http://opera.com

it's available for every conceiveable platform, including mobile devices.

 

[0098386]

Opera... I tried Opera, liked the auto-refresh feature. But I found it a little clunky too but nowhere near as bad as Firefox.

Tried Chrome?

I might give that a try actually. As other users have said here - Firefox is just too big and busy. I want something light on my system and it sounds like Chrome might just be the right browser for XP.

 

[Macmel]

Isn't this a failure for Apple?

I guess: Apple computer parket share is about 10%, but browser marketshare is about 7%. Assuming that every Apple computer connects to the internet (probably very close to the truth), that means that about 30% of the Apple users don't like Apple browser and take the time to download FF or something else (there's no current version of IE for Mac right now). If you think of it, that's more people that the ones that don't like IE percentage-wise. And take into account that there is a current version of safari for PC but there's about 10% computers (apple share) that cannot run IE even if they wanted to. So big failure Apple...

In my case, I use both, but 95% of the time is FF what I use.
Now we can start with the crap that IE is bad (just because is MS and by definition it has to be bad), but the truth is that statistics show it is not more insecure than FF and honestly, I have never had any problems using it (sometimes, under Vista, it actually behaves better than FF, for example, it loads youtube videos faster in my case as compared side to side). I prefer FF both in Mac and PC because I am more used to it. Safari I don't like it at all, and the PC version could not be uglier and less intuitive (I actually uninstalled it after a few minutes).

 

[JohnnyLemonhead]

Interesting, given the fact that Safari is perhaps the least functional browser out there.

 

[BigD58]

So let me get this straight...If you buy a $250 Macworld ticket you get to watch steve talk or are you in a separate room with a big screen?

 

[jbernie]

wow do that many people still use IE? even on windows, everyone recommends firefox

I'm still baffled to how people are actually satisfied with IE.

Computer illiterate people who buy a PC and just use it will be using IE. They make up a large sum of that I'd guess.

PC user since 92, used to use Netscape, then moved over to IE, have on occasion had newer Netscape versions and Firefox installed, just don't see the big deal, it works for what I need which overall isn't that much. Access web mail, reads news, pay some bills.

Some of us just don't get on the you must hate anything Microsoft releases bandwagon.

 

[sangosimo]

If you don't use plugins there is no compelling reason to switch to firefox; IE8 is also nice to have around for the stuff the ietab can't handle.

 

[jzuena]

....
Think about it... how the hell are people going to DOWNLOAD Firefox if OS developers aren't allowed to package a browser?

ftp. How do you think people got NCSA Mosaic back in the day?

 

[MacFly123]

I just got to say, you really shot yourself in the foot with that argument. Mac OS X is what comes preinstalled with a mac, and in Mac OS X the default browser that comes with the system is Safari.

So how are Mac users using Safari not as ignorant as the windows users, using your own argument? They are both using what just came with the hardware they bought.

Yes that is true and I see your point, but the fact is that what I said is pretty much true. People CHOOSE to switch to Macs KNOWING that OS X runs on them because Apple's hardware and software combination is far superior. Mac users are pretty much very aware of what PCs and Windows have to offer, whereas the average ignorant PC user doesn't know any better. When they finally see and experience the alternative with Macs and OS X they choose to switch too unless they are the nerds that like to hotrod and os and hardware lol. But we are talking average Joe computer user here.

And side note, Macs can run Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux and Mac users are MUCH MORE LIKELY to use an alternative browser like FireFox as opposed to the average PC user that doesn't even know what a browser is and thinks that IE is the internet lol.

I use Macs and OS X and Safari because I find them to be infinitely superior in synergy of hardware and software combined and user friendliness, creative ease, interface, cool fun features, speed, safety, beautiful design, etc. etc. etc.

My opinion, but I hope you understand the point I am trying to make which I believe is very valid and true.

 

[MacFly123]

Yes, my life is so much better now that I own an iMac. Apparently, buying a Mac makes people blind Apple fanboys who are either very unintelligent, ignorant, or both.

I happen to own Macs and am very intelligent and aware, it is because of that that I have come to appreciate Macs so much

And the fanboy comment, I don't ever dismiss a product or technology unless I have used it and experienced it first hand with an open mind and yes, I love Apple products because of all the products I have used I find them to be the most fun, easiest to use, most capable and creative and beautifully designed in pretty much every aspect.

Oops, I didn't realize I was double posting in the same thread, sorry mod!

 

[derryquinn]

The reason, I think IE is so good at keeping users, is that it has the word "Internet" in it.

I have tried explaining browsers to lots of people (basic computer users) and they don't want to switch.

I did get one person to switch to Safari on Windows recently, my friends sister.

Conversation goes like this:​

Me: I see you have an iTunes update
Her: I do?
Me: Yeah, look "Apple Software Update" *goes to do exposé on her dell, curses self*
Her: I always just "x" out of that
Me: Nah, iTunes 8 is pretty cool, hey it comes with Safari too, will I get that as well?
Her: ...
Me: It's an Internet Browser.
Her: I already have Internet Browser (Meaning Internet Explorer)
Me: It's different, try it out, I'll download it here.

~~~Roughly 1 Week Later~~~​

Her: *Walks in to me and friend* Oh, Derry, that Safari you got me is really
Me: Oh?
Her: Yeah, It's much faster than the Internet.
Me: *Puzzled* There's only one Internet...
Her: I mean the other Internet, silly!
Me: *Gives up and doesn't bother*


Am I the only one with this situation?

 

[~NeonFire372~]

Safari is a nice browser but I prefer Google Chrome. I wish they'd release it for Mac.

 

[rasmasyean]

<rant>
You! IE users! I know you're there ! You enjoy browsing the web with your so called browsers but you don't have to suffer programming on them.

I think "IE users" are enjoying all the games rather than browsing the web. Those net applications users in that graph are prolly mostly ppl paying their bills. So...naturally, those are the ppl you want to "program" for!

 

[rasmasyean]

Computer illiterate people who buy a PC and just use it will be using IE. They make up a large sum of that I'd guess.

Enterprise browsers are primarily IE.
People are used to IE so they don't bother with the trouble of switching to another browser.

But it IS true that most sites consider IE as their first and foremost "must work good on it" browser. So if you visit various types of sites with rarer services, you will find that non-IE browsers might not work...even FireFox.

 

[rasmasyean]

Actually I know quite a few people who can drive a PC just fine and I tried getting them on FF but they got annoyed at the slow startup speed in comparision and so went back to IE7.

That's weird. FF is supposed to be less resource-ive that IE7. Did you install a bunch of FF Add-ons for them?

 

[rasmasyean]

Nope.

OMG, you're a Digger? Now we know not to trust anything you say.